A conversation with Dr Du Lijuan, Senior Director, The Bridge | China

The Bridge | China is committed to educational innovation. Under the leadership of Dr Du Lijuan, it conducts research projects and high-impact training and development programmes that raise the bar for teaching and learning across our school group and the wider industry. We recently sat down with Dr Du to learn more about her career, her insights on education and her vision for The Bridge | China.

After graduating from Beijing Normal University with a bachelor’s degree in pedagogy, Dr Du started her career as a teacher. She held teaching and managerial posts in several highly reputable international and bilingual schools in Beijing and Hong Kong. But it was while teaching at the International School of Beijing when she saw what makes international education so special. “It opened my eyes to what I had missed in my own schooling," she explains.

So, she decided to relocate to Hong Kong with her family. Dr Du then continued her studies and worked in Hong Kong, receiving a master's degree in teaching Chinese as a foreign language from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and then a doctorate in education from the University of Hong Kong. She eventually took a position serving as principal of a Hong Kong bilingual school, and she was instrumental in forming a partnership with Beijing Tsinghua Primary School and the Feng Zikai International Cultural Association. The partnership’s mission was to expose pupils in Hong Kong to traditional Chinese values and elevate their cultural understanding.

Seeing a growing demand for high-quality education, Dr Du was keen to apply her years of multicultural education experience to China’s massively growing education industry. As it happened, she saw a video of Wellington College China Founder and Chairman Joy Qiao delivering a speech, and it impressed her. “Ms Qiao not only brought Wellington College’s high standards of international education to China but also founded the Hiba brand, introducing more Chinese families to a bilingual education that links China to the rest of the world by cultivating a global outlook in Chinese pupils. Moreover, Ms Qiao, driven by her grander ideal, is committed to expanding Hiba’s presence overseas, promoting Chinese culture on the world stage.”

“A big part of our team's work is to ensure that all WCC schools maintain the highest quality educational output possible. That is why we put in place teaching standards, evaluate teachers and examine pupils' learning performance,” Dr Du says. “The Institute runs parallel with the schools, supporting programmes tailored to the needs of each school.” For example, for some WCC schools, the Institute sent experts in related fields to attend lectures, communicate with the teaching team and then tailor plans for future development. Moreover, the Institute is now providing teacher training programmes and other support for Hiba Academy Nantong in advance of its inaugural academic year.

Moreover, the Institute guides the group’s educational practices with the latest educational research. It cooperates with East China Normal University and other educational institutions, launching rigorous educational research programmes in schools throughout the College. Looking ahead, it will conduct long-term, diverse educational research to ensure that the group remains on the cutting edge of the education industry.  

The increasingly competitive climate in education has become a growing source of stress for many parents and pupils in China. Dr Du says, "It is not something that can be changed overnight. It requires a process of conceptual change, and communication between the parents and the school is essential.”

She believes that parents eventually adapt their ways of thinking and illustrates what she means with an anecdote. A few years ago, she was invited to translate Choice Time: How to Deepen Learning Through Inquiry and Play, a book by Renee Dinerstein. A disagreement arose between Dr Du and the publishing house on the translation of the word ‘play’. The publishing house thought it better to translate it as ‘游戏’, thinking that the readership still viewed schools as a place to learn, not to play. But Du insisted that it should be translated as ‘玩耍’, citing that "children need to play because they learn by playing, and they grow by playing." The publisher eventually agreed. Today, more and more parents have come to regard play as an indispensable part of early childhood education. She also points out that a growing number of parents are prioritising their children’s wellbeing and psychological health. They recognize the value of holistic education. She believes that more parents will come around to these ideas as their line of communication with their children’s school strengthens.  

“In all Wellington and Hiba schools, all subjects are given equal priority, and there are no sharp boundaries between disciplines of lower grades. Holistic education is not lip service here. It is strictly implemented in all aspects of teaching,” she adds. “Our teachers encourage children to develop their interests and seek out their strengths. Holistic education does not mean for students to become experts in all fields. Rather, it means respecting and honouring what makes them unique.”

Thanks to these concerted efforts, Wellington College China schools have sent many graduates to Oxford, Cambridge, Ivy League schools and other globally top-ranked universities. They matriculate to study a wide variety of subjects too, including performing arts, design, sports, music, and other fields. This year, Wellington College Tianjin Leavers received offers from Lausanne Institute of Hotel Management in Switzerland, the Toronto Film Academy in Canada, Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London and more. Likewise, Wellington College International Shanghai Leavers have received offers from University of the Arts London, the University of Chicago, Swarthmore College, and several other great schools. And the offers continue to come in.

Dr Du’s career in education has rewarded her with more than two decades of accomplishment and fulfilment. “Nothing is more exciting and satisfying than seeing children grow up and become confident as they step into the future,” she said. But her greatest source of pride is the growing attention to bilingual education — especially the role of traditional Chinese culture — she has seen in Chinese communities over the past 10 years. Whether they are from Chinese, foreign or mixed nationality families, more and more pupils are gaining cross-cultural competence with Chinese characteristics.

Looking to the future, Dr Du says that The Bridge | China will continue to participate in exchange activities within the field of education. Guided by its vision to "inspire China's education forward through far-reaching educational research, professional learning, and cooperative exchanges," The Bridge | China has initiated many teaching and research projects highly relevant to WCC’s strategic development. The Institute has hosted the Wellington Pudong International Education Curriculum Alliance online training. It co-organised a seminar on ‘Excellent Teaching’ with East China Normal University and regularly hosts preeminent education professionals to conduct teaching, training and research activities.  

Due to the ongoing pandemic, it is difficult to hold in-person events. However, Dr Du says that The Bridge | China is currently organising online training courses and free public lectures. “We hope to share these excellent resources with other teachers so we can contribute to the wider education community in China.”